Internal disciplinary proceedings were initiated against a gaming watchdog employee, following police reports that the resident has allegedly been operating a prostitution website. On Monday, the Judiciary Police arrested a 58-year-old employee of the Gaming Inspection and Coordination Bureau (DICJ), after investigations revealed that he had received benefits amounting to some MOP12 million over the past 10 years through the website. Some 54 women from the mainland were involved. In a statement yesterday, the bureau said that the suspect will be “dealt with in accordance with the law and severely punished.”
Subsidies for disabled workers record increase
In 2022, the Labour Affairs Bureau (DSAL) has assisted 35 job seekers with disabilities to find employment for various positions including administrative staff, waiters, and graphic design clerks. In the third quarter of last year, a total of 21 applications for employment income subsidies for disabled employees were received, all of which met the requirements and were granted to applicants. The figure represents an increase from the 15 applications in the same period in 2021. The Social Welfare Bureau has also successively launched three social enterprise funding programs. The approved social enterprises are in the initial stages of opening, and the bureau is evaluating the relevant conditions under which the programs will operate.
Mobile payment transactions rise to nearly 73m
The number of transactions carried out by local mobile payment platforms rose 18.4% from the previous quarter to 72.7 million in the fourth quarter of 2022. The transaction value increased by 15.9% to MOP7.3 billion, data from the Monetary Authority of Macao shows. The average amount per transaction was MOP100.2. At end-2022, the number of mobile payment terminals and QR codes totaled 95,200, an increase of 2.5% from end-September. Meanwhile, the total number of personal credit cards issued by banks in Macau reached 1,702,444 at end-2022, up 2.0% when compared with end-September. The total number of debit cards issued by banks in Macau rose quarter-to-quarter by 0.7% to 2,109,930. In addition, the number of credit card transactions reached 7.8 million, up 13.3% on a quarterly basis.
